Be the Light

by Rev. Gabriel Baltes, O.S.B.  |  12/18/2022  |  A Message from Our Pastor

Dear Parishioners,

This evening on the Fourth Sunday of Advent for Christians, our Jewish brothers and sisters begin their celebration of Hanukkah. This eight day festival of light is determined by the lunar calendar and so occurs at different times each year. In 2022 Hanukkah is observed from the evening of December 18 to the evening of December 26. Although it is a relatively minor holiday according to the official list of Jewish observances, it takes on greater significance, perhaps because of its proximity to Christmas, and also perhaps, because it comes at the darkest time of the year when the natural desire for more sunlight is a universal craving, at least in the northern hemisphere.

The story of Hanukkah is rooted in the historical account recorded in the First Book of Maccabees found in the Old Testament, or what is sometimes referred to as the Hebrew Scriptures. According to this narrative the Syrian King, Antiochus Epiphanes (a name that means “manifestation”), attempted to supplant the Jewish faith and impose the Greek religion with the worship of Zeus. To accomplish this, the tyrannical leader forbade the use of Hebrew along with various other Jewish customs such as circumcision and dietary practices. He defiled their temple by enshrining an enormous statue of himself in its precincts, an action tantamount to idolatry. He ordered scrolls of the Torah to be destroyed and executed anyone who was found possessing one. It was a period of intense oppression that threatened the freedom and identity of God’s chosen people.

One family among the Jews however, the family of the Maccabees, refused to succumb to the cruel efforts of Antiochus Epiphanes and rallied an army who fought against the king. They were victorious in conquering the Greeks and were able to restore Hebrew worship, thereby also reclaiming their national identity. Since the temple had been desecrated by the idolatrous rituals of the Greeks, it was necessary to re-dedicate this place of solemn worship. Legend has it that there was only one vessel of oil available for what was to be an eight day ceremony. Miraculously, however, the oil of this one vessel supplied enough oil for the eight days. This is why Hanukkah is symbolized by an eight branch candelabra (plus a ninth candle for the purpose of lighting the other candles) called a menorah. One candle is lit each evening accompanied by prayers of thanksgiving to God. It is customary to place the menorah in a window so as to give witness to the power of light in the face of darkness.

The festival of Hanukkah is a reminder to people of all faiths that tyrants have existed throughout history and continue to exercise their dominating power in various forms today. But Hanukkah holds out the promise that such powers are no rival for God. Although the forces of darkness can be extremely violent and can seem hopelessly impenetrable, the light of goodness that comes from the hand of Almighty God will always be victorious in the end. This is essentially the same message we celebrate at Christmas.

So let us unite our voices with those of the Jewish people as together we prayer for an end to oppression over all the earth and for the restoration of that peaceful harmony that God had always intended for his beloved sons and daughters.